Overview
The DV Act is the fastest protective machinery in family law: a Magistrate can grant protection orders, residence orders (you cannot be thrown out of the shared household — owned or rented, in-laws' or husband's), monetary relief, and interim custody, often within the first hearings. It covers physical, emotional, sexual, verbal, and economic abuse, and protects wives, live-in partners, mothers, sisters, and daughters. Breach of a protection order is itself a criminal offence. We handle both sides: securing protection for the aggrieved, and defending men and families against exaggerated or tactical complaints.
Key Provisions — Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005
- Section 17 — the right to reside in the shared household regardless of who owns it; Section 19 residence orders enforce it.
- Section 18 protection orders bar violence, contact, and interference; breach is punishable under Section 31.
- Sections 20–22 — monetary relief (expenses, maintenance, losses) and compensation for injuries including mental torture.
- Relief under the DV Act runs in addition to other laws — maintenance, divorce, and criminal cases proceed in parallel.
What You Can Get
How We Handle It
Application & DIR
Complaint to the Magistrate with the Protection Officer's Domestic Incident Report.
Interim Orders
Protection, residence, and monetary relief sought at the earliest hearings.
Evidence
Medical records, messages, witnesses — proving the pattern of abuse (or disproving it).
Final Orders & Enforcement
Final reliefs; breach prosecuted as a criminal offence.
Frequently Asked Questions
My in-laws are forcing me out of the house — can they?
No. Section 17 protects your residence in the shared household even if it's in their name; a residence order restrains dispossession and can restore you if already removed.
A DV case against me is exaggerated — how do I defend?
DV proceedings are civil in nature — no arrest on filing. A grounded reply, cross-examination on the incidents alleged, and your own evidence of conduct decide it; interim orders can be contested and varied.
Legal Connect connects you with independent family-law advocates; we are not a law firm and this page is general information, not legal advice. Family matters are handled with complete confidentiality — call +91 22 6555 3444.